Sheeman h



.(No Model.)

S. H. HUBBARD 8v S. S. WILLIAMSON.

.BUSTLE.

No. 372,802. Patented Nov. 8, .1887. I

' UNITED STATES PATENT O-Frrcn.

SHERMAN H. HUBBARD AND SAMUEL S. WILLIAMSON, OF BRIDGEPO RT, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNORS TO THOMAS P. TAYLOR, OF SAME PLACE.

BUSTLE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N 0. 372,802, dated November 8, 1887.

Application filed Augustin, 1887. Serial No. 248,048. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that we, SHERMAN H. HUB' BARD and SAMUEL S. WILLIAMSON, citizens of the United States, residing at Bridgeport, in the county of Fairfield and State of Connecticut, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Bustles; and we do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention ,such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

Our invention relates to certain novel and useful improvements in bustles, and has for its object to provide a device of this description, and embodying the folding or collapsing principle, which shall fold closely, and which shall be strong, light, and simple in i' s construction.

With these ends in view our invention consists in the novel device whose details will be hereinafter fully described, and then specifically designated by the claims.

In order that those skilled in the art to which our invention appertains may fully -understand how to make our improvement, we

will describe the same in detail, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification, and in which- Figure 1 is a perspective of our bustle, and Fig. 2 a perspective showing the spring wires separated, so as to clearly develop the exact method of bending which we prefer to employ.

Like parts are designated by the same reference-numbers in both figures.

Our bustle is preferably made in all its parts, excepting the belt and check-tape, from asingle length of spring-wire. In some instances it might be found convenient, for simplicity of manufacture, to make use of several pieces of wire joined together; but in that case the completed bustle would be of practically continuous wire. For that reason we do not desire to be limited, to our precise details of construction, but wish to include such formal changes as might be made without departing from the spirit of our invention.

In the drawings, 1 represents the waistband or belt, and 2 the check-tape which joins the distending bows to the waistband and to each other.

3 are the vertical side stays. They are bent up, each from one end of the wire, and each is turned back upon itself and twisted to secure additional rigidity. Loops 4 are formed at the top of said stays, and the extremities of the wire are bent into the eyes 5 at the bottom of the side stays. This construction, while somewhat diflicult to explain, will beperfectly apparent by reference to the drawings.

The bows are formedas follows; At the bottom ends of the side stays the wire passes across through both eyes 5, and then outward and around to make the bow proper, this operation being repeated until as many bows are formed as. are required to-make a' bustle of th proper size and shape.

The bows we designate, by number, as 6, and

the transverse straight portions of wire which pass through the eyes we indicate by 7. The spring action of the bows is obtained by the axial torsional strain which ensues to the transverse wires 7 when the bows are turned upward toward the body of the wearer. When the pressure on the bustle is released, said spring action returns the bows outward and downward to their normal position.

In our device each bow is spring-actuated independent of each and all the other bows, and their relative positions are determined by the checktape or spacing-cord. The eyes 5 upon the extremities of the wire form an excellent contrivance for holding the spring-see tions 7 together. Independent rings or sleeves might, however, be readily substituted therefor and the same result attained.

We claim as our invention- 1. In a bustle, the combination, with a waistband, of a pair of side stays, a series of transverse spring -wire sections extending across between the bases of said'side stays, a plurality of normallyexpanded spring-distending bows, each joined to and controlled by one of said sections, whereby each bowis actuated independently of the remainder, means, as described, whereby the spring-sections are secured together, andacheck-tape for suitably spacing the bows, as specified.

2. A bustle, the same consisting of a pair of vertical side stays twisted from double wires, the extremities at the bottom being twisted into eyes, the transverse spring-wire sections passing through and held together by said eyes, the ontwawily-extending spring bows incured to the waistband and the bows, whereby tegral with said spring-sections, and a suitable the positions of the latter are determined. waistband and cheek-tape, substantially as de- In testimony whereof we affi'x our signatures scribed. in presence of two witnesses. 5 3. The combination, with the waistband, of

the vertical side stays having eyes at the bottom, the transverse spring-sections passing through said eyes and across between the bases \Vitnesses: of the side stays, the distending bows integral T. \V. SMITH, Jr.,

10 with the spring-sections, and a check-tape se A. J. HISCOTT. 

